How to Design Packaging for Psychedelic Products With Harm Reduction in Mind

As the push for the legalisation of psychedelics continues, questions around safety and harm reduction should continue to be raised. If psychedelics were legalised for non-medical use in certain US states and countries, they would need to be regulated. But there are differing opinions on what this model of regulation should look like.

The commercial sale of psychedelics would, of course, make them more widely available and accessible. On the one hand, this can help minimise the existing harms of psychedelics since buyers will be more confident that they are purchasing genuine, unadulterated products. In the current illicit market, there is much more uncertainty; for instance, the harmful psychedelic 25I-NBOMe is often sold as LSD. On the other hand, new risks emerge, such as vulnerable individuals having easier access to potent psychoactive compounds.

However, there are ways to design packaging for psychedelic products that minimise the risks involved. In this article, I will be drawing on a guide from Transform Drug Policy Foundation titled ‘How to Regulate Psychedelics’. This document presents different models of how psychedelics could be regulated. But we’ll be focusing on the regulation of psychedelics as commercially sold products, which in the future would likely be sold by specialised vendors and dispensaries. These dispensaries might be similar to the headshops in Amsterdam that sell ‘magic truffles’ (which contain psilocybin) and other psychedelics. They might also look like the psychedelic dispensaries that Dana Larsen opened in Vancouver (these dispensaries, and similar ones in Canada, are operating illegally and openly; there have been raids, but the raided stores later reopened). At Larsen’s dispensary, psychedelics sold include various types of psilocybin mushrooms, LSD, mescaline-containing cacti, DMT, and 5-MeO-DMT.

We can also look at how Dutch headshops and Canadian dispensaries operate for information on how packaging for psychedelic products can be designed with harm reduction in mind. In addition, the way that psychedelic products (e.g. psilocybin mushroom chocolates) are sold in the underground market can help us see the dangers of using the wrong kind of packaging.

One way to protect consumers through the retail sale of psychedelics is by ensuring that only evidence-based information is included on the packaging (either on the container/packet, in a leaflet provided, or accessible online through a QR code).

Transform states, “Where medical claims are made about retail products or services, these should be subject to the same requirements of evidence, evaluation and regulation as other medicines and treatments.” Regulations should be put in place that prevent vendors from making false or unproven claims as a way to exploit vulnerable individuals who are seeking relief from mental health problems. Misleading claims can cause direct or indirect harm to consumers.

Crucial harm reduction information that all psychedelic products should include on the packaging is dosage information. This would include the kinds of effects one should expect at various dosage levels. Particular attention should be paid to safely taking higher doses: this might include recommendations to be somewhere safe, comfortable, and familiar; away from traffic; and ideally with a trusted (and sober) sitter if one is inexperienced.

Magic truffle boxes in Amsterdam contain useful dosage information, including how much to take (for desired effects) based on the strength of each product (some varieties of truffles are stronger than others). There is also a recommendation about not consuming more than one box (i.e. 15 g) if you want a strong experience, which can involve mystical effects.

Packaging for psychedelic products should include easy-to-understand and comprehensive (as well as concise) information on the potential effects of the psychedelic in question. Spiritual language or psychonaut jargon is perhaps best avoided, as this may be unfamiliar to many novice users. In addition, leaflets with lots of information on potential effects may feel like too much effort to read. However, general information about positive and negative sensory, emotional, cognitive, and physical effects can be included.

This information should be impartial and not be biased towards either the positive or negative: overplaying the positive and downplaying the negative, and vice versa, may increase the chance of a negative experience. If a consumer only expects positive effects, then negative effects might feel more concerning and overwhelming. Conversely, if they read only about the risks of a bad trip, then this might make them excessively worried, which is not the ideal headspace to enter the experience.

On a label on the box/packet, in a leaflet inside the box/packet, in a leaflet provided with the product, or on websites accessible through a QR code on the product, there should be information about safe usage. This should include the following information:

• Avoid, or be careful about, mixing the product with alcohol and other drugs. For instance, cannabis can intensify the trip
• Contraindications (i.e. avoid using the psychedelic if one has certain underlying health conditions or mental health problems, or if one is taking a particular type of medication)
• Avoid chaotic, unfamiliar, uncomfortable, or unsafe environments, and instead have the experience in a safe, quiet, comfortable, and trusted environment
• The best ‘set’ (mindset) in which to have the experience (e.g. feeling physically well, rested, prepared, and not in a highly stressed or anxious state)
• Avoid having the trip if one has responsibilities that day and the day after
• Avoid driving a car or heavy machinery
• How to navigate difficult psychedelic experiences
• Pre-existing mental health problems that can make tripping riskier, such as schizophrenia or another psychotic disorder
• Avoid using if pregnant

Packaging for psychedelic products, leaflets given when purchasing these products, or websites accessible through a QR code, could also include information about potential short-, medium-, or long-term risks. The writer and researcher Jules Evans has been covering the risks of psychedelics, including extended post-trip difficulties, through the Challenging Psychedelic Experiences Project and his site Ecstatic Integration. This information could be helpful in a future system of psychedelic legalisation, ensuring that when people buy psychedelic products, these products come with evidence-based and actionable information on risks and how to deal with persisting difficulties should they occur.

Not all psychedelics are alike. Some are short-lasting, and some are long-lasting. Some require very small doses to achieve strong effects (e.g. LSD), whereas other needs much higher doses (e.g. mescaline). The types of experiences that each psychedelic induces can also vary. For example, a strong DMT or 5-MeO-DMT experience is typically different from a strong LSD or mescaline experience. For this reason, packaging should vary based on the psychedelic being sold. This should include tailored harm reduction information.

For instance, a DMT product should more strongly stress needing a sitter to look after one’s physical safety. This is especially important in the case of 5-MeO-DMT, as intense physical reactions can occur. Moreover, in the case of 5-MeO-DMT, doses are very small (6–12 mg is a common range), so being careful with the dosage should be stressed, as should the unique risks of this compound, such as the possibility of experiencing ‘reactivations’ or ‘flashbacks’. The 5-MeO-DMT experience is often considered the most intense psychedelic experience one can have, which may lead some (including the most enthusiastic psychedelic users and activists) to raise concerns about selling it in stores. If it were to be sold at psychedelic dispensaries in the future, tighter controls would be needed. Transform argues that “certain riskier preparations justify stricter regulation”. This might include 5-MeO-DMT.

Larsen’s dispensaries offer user guides at their dispensaries tailored for specific psychedelics. Future stores could follow suit. This would ensure that users don’t just have generic information about using psychedelics in general. They should be provided with relevant information for each product.

Psychedelic products should be clearly labelled, ensuring that the buyer knows exactly what they’re purchasing, and has no issue reading or understanding information related to dosage, effects, safe usage, risks, mode of use, tolerance, cross-tolerance, and frequency of use. A health warning logo, health warnings, and safety advice should be highly visible.

If legalised, psychedelic products would be age-restricted. In the US, the age restriction would likely be 21 years and older, whereas in the United Kingdom, for instance, it would likely be 18 years and older. (When psilocybin mushrooms were briefly sold by vendors in the UK, due to a loophole in the law, they were not sold to under-18s). However, even though only legal adults will be able to purchase these products, the packaging still needs to be designed to prevent children from using them. This means using child-resistant packaging, which is designed to make it difficult for children under five years old to open while still being easy for adults to use.

In their guide, Transform states that “prohibiting any marketing, packaging or branding attractive to children or resembling confectionery products should be a requirement”. In the illicit psychedelic market, vendors often sell mushroom chocolate products with colourful, cartoon packaging that can easily appeal to a child. This has led to instances of children getting hold of these mushroom chocolates and consuming them. This kind of packaging led a six-year-old in Florida to eat an entire bar without heeding the warning that each package contained four grams of mushrooms.

Transform makes the case for plain packaging in their guide:

Packaging for psychedelic drug products should involve plain packaging, devoid of promotional branding or other marketing, particularly anything that may appeal to children…. Some may argue that plain packaging with prominent health warnings could negatively influence the expectations and mindset of the user, but this is ultimately a necessary requirement for a product that carries potential risks, and the alternative would be some form of design/branding that could influence them in other ways. Therefore, plain packaging with an emphasis on functionality is a reasonable default and does not preclude the consumer being able to transfer the product into their own preferred form of storage post-purchase.

Advocates of psychedelic legalisation may not agree with all of Transform’s recommendations (psychedelic dispensaries, for instance, don’t sell products that look like the regulated products that Transform has in mind). Nonetheless, Transform’s guide offers useful tips on how to regulate psychedelics with safety as a top priority.

When it comes to regulating legal psychedelics, there will always have to be a compromise between the freedom of businesses in how they sell and market their products and legal restrictions intended to protect consumers. Given how unique psychedelics are in their effects – which can be unpredictable, vary wildly from trip to trip, and depend on set and setting – fixing regulations around them is tricky. It gets trickier given that not all compounds are created equally; they can differ significantly in terms of their potency, duration, cultural associations, and physical and subjective effects. 

It is understandable to be concerned about placing such powerful compounds in the hands of the market, which is driven by profit. There are legitimate fears that the profit motive may be prioritised over consumer interests and well-being. Yet if we are to respect the freedom (and healthy desire) that people have to explore altered states of consciousness, then many psychedelic advocates see full legalisation as the natural outcome of this. A future with a safe, regulated psychedelic market – with evidence-based, well-thought-out regulations – is possible. But ultimately, safe psychedelic use has to go beyond regulations around packaging; these sorts of changes have to occur alongside a cultural shift that recognises how to use these compounds wisely.